Here's an idea for crime prevention.  There are devices called Stealth or Trophy cameras.  They were designed to be placed out in the wild.  When an animal or bird goes by the camera in the day or at night the camera either takes a short video or a series of pictures.

So how does this tie into crime prevention.  Currently I have one in front of my house on middle Melrose St.  It takes pictures of the sidewalk and street in front of my house.  With a similar camera across the street pretty much anyone walking down the street gets photographed, as does every street cleaner, stray cat, and sometimes falling leaves. 

The camera's keep track of time, date, stage of the moon, and temperature. The time is the important part, however.  If there is criminal activity nearby, you can very easily upload the pictures and check to see if you have caught any pictures of strange activity on the street.  You can do this even days later, if you know the date and approximate time of the event.  These pictures can be easily shared with neighbors, posted on the 19th ward crime alert Facebook group, or shared with police. 

The model in-front of my house, has an instant playback feature, so if needed I can instantly go through the pictures to show a police officer. I have found that the police officer on the beat, needs an instant picture, not a picture that maybe of better quality but that won't be available for 20 - 30 minutes.  The trophy cams allow that instant access, either by the video on the camera or if downloaded to a laptop or digital camera. 

The cameras are also visible from the street and light up when they are activated which serves as a great deterrent during the day or at night.  The feature is designed in part to get an animal to look at the camera as their picture is taken.

So while one camera on one street is great, if there were other's scattered around the neighborhood this could potentially greatly help deterring crime, and in helping the police identify suspicious activity or suspicious persons.  Especially if our local police knew where the cameras where and which camera's might have caught a crime in the act or someone going to or leaving a crime scene area. 

The camera's are not cheap but also are not terribly expensive. Depending on the model or type bought they can range from $60 to $250.  But two camera's on either side of a street can catch everyone walking up or down that street. 

If your interested walk down middle Melrose, but remember you'll be in the pictures